'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' teaser poster

…there’s Benedict Cumberbatch as a big, bad, dwarf-hating dragon.

The motion-capture character himself doesn’t actually appear on this new poster for the second film in Peter Jackson’s Hobbit series, which trades goofy dwarf portraits for something moodier. Look at the entrance to the Lonely Mountain in the center of the image, though, and you’ll spy a veil of mist covering a tantalizing golden gleam, which could represent either the treasures within the mountain or Smaug’s fire breath. Good luck, little Bilbo (Martin Freeman) — you’re gonna need it.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug premieres Dec. 13. Jackson’s final Hobbit film, The Hobbit: There and Back Again is scheduled to bow one year later on Dec. 17.

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